Bloomberg won't endorse a successor

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Friday that he will not endorse a candidate in this year’s election to replace him.

Bloomberg said on his weekly radio show on WOR 710 in New York that one of his most important jobs as mayor is to help his successor transition into the office.

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“I’m very proud of what we did, I want to make sure the good things get continued. Some are done, some are in process. I don’t want to do anything that complicates it for the next mayor, and that’s one of the reasons I’ve decided I’m just not going to make an endorsement in the race,” he said.

Bloomberg, who is in his third term as mayor in the Big Apple, did not endorse a candidate in the primaries this week. Joe Lhota, the former deputy mayor for Rudy Guiliani, won the Republican primary on Tuesday. Bill de Blasio, the city’s public advocate, leads in the Democratic primary over former Comptroller Bill Thompson. It is uncertain at this point whether there will be a runoff election between de Blasio and Thompson because all the ballots have yet to be counted. If de Blasio receives over 40 percent of the vote, there will be no runoff.

“It’s really important to the next mayor that they have the tools, they’ve got to know where everything is and what status it’s in and which buttons to push, and how to keep it going, particularly at the beginning as they form a team and as that team comes in and gets that experience,” Bloomberg said. “And helping the next mayor get prepared for the job so they can hit the ground running is really one of the most important things I can do for New Yorkers after November.”